NOT  “MISSIONS,” 
BUT  CHURCHES, 
FOR  WORKINGMEN 


By  the  Rev.  Charles  Stelzle. 

i 

It  has  long  since  been  discovered  that  the 
average  “  mission,”  as  a  means  for  reaching 
workingmen,  is  a  failure.  The  women  and 
the  children  may  be  attracted,  but  the  men 
will  not  come. 

The  very  name  “  mission  ”  repels  the  inde¬ 
pendent  mechanic.  It  savors  too  much  of 
patronage  or  paternalism,  and  there  are  few 
things  that  the  workingman  hates  more  than 
these.  Mr.  Moody  learned  this  lesson  early  in 
his  work.  He  never  called  any  of  his  ven¬ 
tures  a  “mission.”  His  first  enterprise  was 
known  as  a  “Tabernacle.”  Then  it  became 
a  church.  When  he  organized  a  so-called 
“  rescue  ”  mission  in  the  slums  of  Chicago  he 
insisted  that  it  become  known  as  “  Institute 
Hall.” 

If  the  workingman  is  to  be  reached,  it  must 
be  done  through  the  Church  —  a  church  in 
which  he  will  .feel  a  personal  interest  because 
-  he  has  a  part  in  its  management.  There  is  a 
place  in  our  city  work  for  the  rescue  mission 
—  a  very  important  place,  sometimes.  But  we 
are  dealing  just  now  not  with  the  man  who 
has  become  an  outcast,  but  with  the  bona-fide 
workingman,  who  has  a  home  and  usually  a 
family. 


Such  a  Church  sliQuld  become  the  center 
of  the  lives  of  the  people  of  the  community, 
and  its  work  should  be  pushed  with  vigor. 
But  the  averrge  church  in  a  workingman’s 
district  is  poorly  equipped  for  aggressive 
work,  although  it  usually  has  a  corps  of  work¬ 
ers  who  will  respond  to  trained  and  intelligent 
leadership.  If  the  same  amount  of  money 
which  is  spent  in  the  average  mission  were  put 
into  a  regularly  organized  church,  the  result 
would  be  a  church  equipped  to  do  a  splendid 
work  for  the  community.  The  money  should 
be  spent  only  for  special  work,  the  people 
themselves  paying  for  the  regular  work  of 
the  church.  This  should  be  insisted  upon, 
and  should  be  made  a  condition  upon  which 
the  money  for  special  work  may  be  received. 

There  is  many  a  city  mission  enterprise 
supported  by  a  wealthy  church,  the  people  of 
the  mission  having  no  responsibility  or  care 
as  to  the  financial  obligations  of  the  work,  with 
the  result  that  the  people  are  being  pauperized 
and  the  work  impoverished. 

While  personal  service  by  those  who  have 
had  superior  advantages  —  mentally,  socially, 
and  spiritually  —  is  of  the  utmost  importance 
in  reaching  and  helping  workingmen,  it  some¬ 
times  happens  that  there  are  many  members 
in  the  wealthier  church  who,  for  various 
reasons,  cannot  render  the  service  they  would 
like.  The  next  best  thing  is  to  have  a  sub¬ 
stitute  in  the  city  mission  field.  If  a  sufficient 
number  have  a  sense  of  responsibility  in  this 
connection,  it  will  he  an  easy  matter  for  a 
particular  church  to  assume  the  care  of  an¬ 
other  church,  situated  in  a  mission  field,  and 
to  form  something  like  a  collegiate  relation¬ 
ship  with  that  church,  having  perhaps  two 
elders  and  a  similar  number  of  trustees  in  an 
advisory  capacity,  on  its  boards. 


This  will  be  found  far  more  satisfactory 
than  the  old  method  of  supporting  a  “  mis¬ 
sion,”  as  there  will  be  a  healthier  response  on 
the  part  of  the  people,  and  probably  no  greater 
expense  on  the  part  of  the  larger  church. 

It  is  sometimes  urged  that  competent  of¬ 
ficers  cannot  be  found  among  the  men  in  the 
average  mission,  and  this  is  offered  as  an  ex¬ 
cuse  for  non-organization.  The  trouble  is 
that  we  do  not  credit  the  average  young  man 
in  the  mission  with  the  good  judgment  and 
general  ability  which  he  really  possesses.  The 
people  in  a  mission  field  mature  much  earlier 
than  those  in  the  ”  up  town  ”  district.  They 
brush  against  men  sooner.  They  have  respon¬ 
sibilities  thrust  upon  them  earlier.  And  their 
judgment  is  about  as  good. 

In  a  certain  church  (with  which  I  am 
familiar),  where  some  of  the  best  work  in 
this  country  is  being  done  to-day,  the  elders 
were  all  under  thirty  when  the  church  was 
organized,  and  of  the  seven  deacons,  only  one 
was  over  twent3^-one.  The  success  of  that 
enterprise  is  due  very  largely  to  the  devotion 
of  these  workers. 

Place  the  responsibility  upon  the  shoulders 
of  the  young  workingmen  in  your  mission 
churches,  and  something  will  be  done.  They 
will  not  be  handicapped  because  of  the  pres¬ 
sure  of  social  duties.  They  will  live  for  that 
church  which  trusts  them  with  office.  They 
understand  the  needs  of  the  community  better 
than  those  who  come  from  “  up  town.”  They 
will  be  more  enthusiastic  because  it  is  now 
their  work.  They  haven’t  as  many  fears  or 
prejudices  as  their  elders. 

This  is,  therefore,  commended  as  a  workable 
plan  —  a  non-pauperizing  church:  a  church 
equipped  with  a  strong  force  of  competent 
workers  under  intelligent,  paid  leadership ;  a 


church  in  such  collegiate  relationship  as  will 
give  the  supporting  church  a  friendly  over¬ 
sight, 'bringing  its  officers  and  members  into 
touch  with  the  problems  of  the  workingman 
through  conference  and  frequent  intercourse, 
so  that  there  will  be  a  better  understanding, 
and,  therefore,  a  more  cordial  relationship 
between  them ;  and  the  expenditure  of  a  suf¬ 
ficient  amount  of  money  to  permit  the  doing 
of  the  work  which  the  neighborhood  warrants 
and  really  demands. 


Other  Leaflets  by  the  Rev.  Charles  Stelzle. 

“  Class  Spirit  in  America.” 

“  Has  the  Minister  a  ‘  Closed  Shop  *?  ” 

“  Is  the  Church  Opposed  to  Workingmen?  ” 

“  Jesus  Christ  and  Rich  Men.” 

“  Labor  Leaders  in  the  Church.” 

“  One  Pastor,  One  Church,  One  Year  and  One 
Hundred  Dollars.” 

“  Special  Work  among  Workingmen  by  the  Pres¬ 
byterian  Board  of_  Home  Missions.” 

“The  Organization  of  an  Anti-Poverty  Society.” 

“  The  Plan  of  Campaign  in  the  Interest  of  Work¬ 
ingmen.” 

“  The  Relation  of  the  Church  to  the  Labor  Move¬ 
ment.” 


The  Board  of  Home  Hissions  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  U.  5.  A.,  156  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York 

No.  206. — 1st  Ed. — 12,  1904. 


